Never Leave
by Hypo Prower
Summary: All Kakashi wanted to do was protect his student. But rejoining the ANBU may cause more pain than help. KakaOC, sequel to Always There.
1. A Lift Back to Konoha

**A/N: Told you it wouldn't be long! Here's the third in the "Without a Doubt" saga. This should be about the same length of 'Always There', which means roughly 6 chapters.**

**Also, big thanks to Kakashi Forever for reviewing! You're one of the people I keep posting for! :)**

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"Erg…stupid rain."

Ai Raiokachi glared out the window at her house. She wore her lightning-blonde hair up in a ponytail and blew her bangs out of her face, due to them not being long enough to stay up. Her brilliant blue eyes complimented her face, and usually danced when the sunlight hit her face right. Her outfit pertained of a bright orange zip-up cloth jacket with a white t-shirt underneath, and orange sweatpants that matched her jacket.

The chunin grew a bored expression as she watched the rain fall even harder than before. "This sucks," she announced aloud to no one in particular. The only person that heard her was Guy, whom she shared a house with as a father-daughter relationship.

Guy strode over to the window next to Ai and gazed out at the drops falling onto the grass. "I can't disagree," he said, ruffling Ai's hair. The kunoichi playfully shoved his hand away and looked out the window again.

Her headband lay on the table in front of her. She fidgeted with the edge of it, desperately hoping that she would be able to use it today. Guy studied Ai's anxious expression for a moment.

"You look bored," he commented. Ai shot him a burning glare.

"No, really?" she asked sarcastically.

The wind started to pick up, and it began blowing harshly against the house. Guy warily edged away. "Maybe you shouldn't sit so close to the window," he advised.

Ai rolled her eyes. "Pssh, whatever. I've never seen a window bust open because of a little rain."

Guy shrugged. "Suit yourself," he added before walking off.

The rain began to howl outside the house. Ai realized that the wind was blowing right in the direction of the window. For a brief moment, she considered getting up and moving away from the window. Then she shrugged it off. Nah. That would just prove that Guy was right.

It wasn't long before Ai grew so bored she couldn't take it anymore. Her eyelids drooped, and she fell asleep, resting her head in her arms.

***

"Get the heck out of here!"

Ai's foot came crashing down on the enemy she was fighting. It was a shinobi from Kusagakure, and a big one at that.

It was the next day, and the raining had stopped. Tsunade had gotten reports about two Kusagakure ninja planning to sneak into the village at night, so she decided to send Kakashi out to stop them. And, after a little persuasion on Ai's part, she was added to the party.

It was now that the student and teacher were taking care of the enemy ninja.

Ai's opponent slid backwards from her blow, and Ai landed neatly on her feet in front of him. He grinned evilly and did a few hand signs. Always alert, Ai scooted back some and performed a few hand signs herself.

After a moment to focus her chakra, she pulled her sword that was strapped to her back out of its holster. The sword was now glowing with electricity sparkling off it. The chunin took a running start, and before the Kusagakure ninja could finish his hand signs, she impaled him with the sword. His body convulsed with the electricity, then it fell limp.

Ai smirked and took a moment to shake the blood off the shining blade. Then she remembered her teacher was still fighting and, after replacing the sword in its sheath, she dashed off.

"Kakashi-sensei!" she cried, looking for him. She got a small response, and flew off in the direction of his voice.

Upon arrival, Ai found that Kakashi and his opponent were locked together, trying to overpower one another with a kunai. Kakashi glanced over at her, then back at the Kusa-nin that stood in front of him. Ai stood and watched for a moment before forming a plan to help her teacher.

"Hold on, sensei!" she called, and disappeared from sight, causing Kakashi to look puzzled.

"Heh heh, you die now," the enemy growled, and got his kunai at the ready. Before he could stab Kakashi, however, he was thrown off his feet. Kakashi leapt back and saw that a trip wire had been weaved around his feet.

He looked around frantically for Ai, knowing that she was the one who did it. Where could she have gone? What did her plan require?

His thoughts melted away, though, as his opponent got shakily to his feet and pulled out a kunai again. "NOW you die!" he spat, then started running for Kakashi.

"Not on my watch, ya don't!"

Ai's voice rang throughout the area, and before Kakashi could comprehend, she was dangling on his arms, trying to yank the kunai out of his hands. The jonin's pupils dilated. "No, Ai get off!" he cried desperately. "He's going to stab you!"

"No way!" Ai argued back, dismissing her teacher's words. She glared at the Kusagakure ninja. "Hey ugly, why don't you high-tail it out of here before I have to make you?!"

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at his student's bull-headedness. "Ai. Get off NOW," he said sternly. Ai glanced back at him, then to the enemy again.

With an impressive combo, Ai used the enemy's arms like a springboard to launch herself upwards. In the air, she formed a hand sign. "KageBunshin no Jutsu!" she recited, and four doppelgangers appeared beside her. They all launched down and simultaneously beat the snot out the Kusagakure ninja.

After the dust cleared, Kakashi gasped when he saw the opponent lying face down on the ground, and Ai looking very proud of herself. "See, sensei?" she jeered cheekily. "I'm fine."

Kakashi sighed with relief before his expression turned hard. "Ai, what have I told you repeatedly about which fights to go for and which to walk away from?" Ai furrowed her brow and crossed her arms.

"Aw, come on, I beat him didn't I?"

"What if you hadn't?" Kakashi challenged.

Ai pondered a moment before sighing. "Alright, I get it." She smiled as he walked forward, and suddenly attached herself to his torso. "I'm sorry," she said.

Kakashi glared down at her, trying to look tough while on the inside he was a big marshmallow. He finally sighed, exasperated from the fight, and unattached his student. "Let's go home."

As the jonin started to walk away, Ai followed him for a step before falling flat on her face. Alarmed, Kakashi spun around and looked curiously at her. Then he turned stern again. "You broke your ankle, didn't you?" he asked.

Ai smiled sheepishly. "Of course not!...I sprained it."

Kakashi sighed and walked back, helping her to her feet and hauling her up on his back. "Case in point," he muttered, and began running back towards Konoha.


	2. The Decision

**Alright! I got two new fans! :)**

**Here's chapter two for you guys. Enjoy!**

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"Oh, come on! It's only a sprain!"

Ai sat down on a hospital bed, her feet dangling over the sides. Kakashi hovered in the background and leaned against the wall. Shizune stood in front of Ai, her expression irritated.

"You can't walk on it," Shizune pointed out. "What's the point of not going on bed rest?"

Ai crossed her arms. "I can walk fine," she argued, obviously lying. "And I should be out there training like everyone else! I know there are missions to be done."

Kakashi looked up at Ai for a moment, lost in thought. The chunin looked back and pointed to Shizune. "Tell her, Kakashi-sensei! I should out there with everyone else, right?!"

The jonin shrugged. "Actually, I'm with Shizune on this one," he replied.

"WHAT?!"

Ai glared at her teacher. "Thanks for the support," she said sarcastically. Shizune smiled a little softer.

"Go home and rest your ankle some, and you should be OK within a week."

"A WEEK?!"

Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle to himself. Then he frowned, remembering what he had planned on doing. How was he going to tell Ai?

***

Kakashi couldn't help but feel a little out-of-place as he gazed at his attire.

He no longer wore the blue sweats and jonin vest. He instead wore his old ANBU uniform, with its tan shirt and gray pants. The copy-nin had dug out the ANBU mask he thought he would never wear again, and sighed as he gazed at the animal face. Was he really going to rejoin the ANBU?

It was going to be awkward at first. Kakashi was nearing 27, while all the other members were likely young pups, probably around 20. He was going to have many more types of jutsu he had mastered, and he was going to be much stronger than them. He would likely act as a leader of 10-man squads.

Still, he had to get away. Kakashi needed to get away from Ai.

Not from the village, necessarily. If he had wanted to do that, then he would have just left the village. No, this required something bigger. Kakashi needed to stay in Konoha to keep an eye on Naruto, Sakura, and the rest of his acquaintances, but he needed to stay at a distance.

Ai would never get hurt from being around him again.

Sure, the sprained ankle was minor. And that was almost unavoidable anyway, because she would, of course, go on many missions herself and get hurt.

But what was next? A broken leg? Cracked ribs?

Kakashi knew that those were all risks no matter if he stayed with Ai or not. Ninjas had a tendency to die young, and to die from dire wounds. Heck, you didn't need to look too hard to figure that one out. There was Nawaki, Tsunade's brother, Itachi (whom had died, according to a report from an unknown sender), Haku and Zabuza…the list went on and on.

But Kakashi had a tendency to get assigned dangerous missions. And Ai's liquid-blue eyes would make him give in to just about anything, including accompanying him.

He would never leave Konoha, for he had sworn to himself to protect his friends no matter what. But at the same time, that required putting a gap between himself and his friends.

After making sure he had everything, Kakashi opened his door and shut it firmly behind him. The night air filled his senses. He looked one more time around himself to make sure no one was watching, and he placed his ANBU mask firmly over his face.

The jonin took off into the night air, leaving his house—and his former life—behind. The ANBU would be meeting tonight.

He mustn't be late.

***

"Have you seen Kakashi-sensei around?"

Ai called to Guy from the living room, which was just a short distance from the kitchen. Guy was attempting to cook but was failing miserably at it. Ai cooked all his meals.

The jonin finally gave up and strolled into the living room. "Not recently, no," he replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Kinda makes me wonder where he's at."

Ai sighed wistfully, having shot down one more person that could possibly know where her MIA sensei was. She hadn't seen him since yesterday at the hospital when she was getting the splint on her ankle. "That doesn't make sense," she said, frowning. She leaned her head back on the couch and attempted to move her ankle that was propped up on the table. It didn't work out well.

Guy gave her a look, silently warning her not to push herself in her condition. Ai groaned and glared at her ankle, which still seemed to be throbbing. Then she remembered about Kakashi.

"Like I said, it doesn't make sense," she said again, frowning. "I've looked all over the village for him."

"What were you doing looking all over the village?" Guy demanded, crossing his arms and glaring at her sprained ankle. Ai smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head.

"Well, it's kind of a funny story," she replied. "See, I sort of hopped outside so I could get some fresh air, and I saw Naruto off in the distance, he kinda helped me get around…"

Guy raised an eyebrow and frowned. "It's never going to get better if you keep pushing yourself," he warned. "Just stay in the house and rest, OK?"

Ai threw up her arms. "It's sooo BORING!" she wailed. "I think I'm going to die if I don't get out of here soon!"

"Boring or not," Guy replied. "Do what Shizune told you. You'll be happy you did."

"Whatever," Ai muttered, pouting and muttering to herself.

The chunin suddenly looked up as Guy put a hand on her shoulder. "And don't worry about Kakashi," he said with a smile. "I'll look for him tomorrow."

Ai smiled slightly and sighed. "Do whatever you want, weirdo," she chuckled.

Guy stood up and walked back to the kitchen. There was silence for a moment as Ai lost herself in thoughts before she heard her 'father' scream. She gasped and leapt out of the couch, ignoring the throbbing pain in her foot.

She hobbled into the kitchen and nearly screamed as she saw the stove on fire. Guy was turning frantic and tried grabbing a glass out of the cabinet to fill it up and put the fire out.

"IDIOT!" Ai hollered.

"Sit back down!" Guy yelled at her before dumping nearly half a gallon of water all over the stove.

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**Oh noes! Kakashi joins the ANBU! But if you know Ai, then you know that something is going to happen...**


	3. For the First Time

**Here's chapter 3. Umm, I can't really think of anything else to say at the moment...**

**Oh yeah. In case some of you guys haven't heard yet...I don't own Naruto. Sorry! If I did, well, things would be different...that's all I can say...**

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Guy stood in front of the Hokage's desk. He wore a rather serious expression on his usually goofy face. "I see…so that's the situation," he said, more to himself that to Tsunade, who was seated in her desk.

She nodded, looking rather grave herself. "I really don't know why he did it, but he did. I didn't argue…there wasn't much point. He's running from something."

There was silence for a moment, and Guy crossed his arms and heaved. "What am I going to tell Ai?" he muttered.

"Tell me what?"

Both the ninja in the room gasped and turned towards the doorway and watched Neji Hyuga walk in with Ai hanging on his back. "Hey," Neji said, rather embarrassed that he was carting around the kunoichi.

"N-Neji?!" Guy asked, confused by the sudden appearance of his student. "Why are you here? Why did you bring Ai with you?"

Ai rolled her eyes. "Well, I obviously can't walk on my own." Then she winked. "It's amazing how easily it is to manipulate you, Neji."

Neji growled, blowing a strand of brown hair out of his face crossly. "Yeah, we'll see about that next time…"

Tsunade stood up. "Ai, you're supposed to be at home, resting your ankle. Why, pray tell, did you drag Neji out here?"

Ai was instead focused on another matter. "What did you want to tell me, Guy?" she prodded. Guy blinked in remembrance of what he had come to the Hokage about in the first place.

The jonin turned to Tsunade. "Should we tell her?" he asked. Tsunade sighed and nodded.

"Better us than someone else," she pointed out.

Guy turned to Ai and frowned. "Ai…Kakashi rejoined the ANBU Black Ops."

Ai's pupils dilated in surprise. "Wh-what?!" she spat in disbelief. Neji stumbled as she convulsed backwards.

"Be careful," he told her hastily, fighting to regain his balance.

Ai shuddered. She had never known a lot about the ANBU except that they were Konoha's most skilled ninja. They were in charge of assassinations, and would go on long missions away from the village. Not to mention that the missions were often S-rank and the death rate was unbelievably high.

"Why…" the chunin muttered. Neji was a little disturbed about the information too.

"Why would Kakashi join the ANBU? He's got two ninja teams to look after. He makes enough pay now anyway, right?"

Tsunade nodded. "It would appear so," she murmured. "I think he's running from something. I just don't know what."

Ai shifted her gaze from Guy, who had taken an interest in the carpet, to Tsunade, who was suddenly very sheepish and was scribbling on some paper. She gasped and balled her hands into fists.

"You…you think he's running from me!" Ai accused. Guy looked up in a sudden shock, and Tsunade's mouth fell slightly agape.

The kunoichi nodded, "Yeah, that's right! And it would make perfect sense, too! Because we've been hanging around each other all the time, and…"

Neji was silent for a moment before speaking. "He's running away to protect you," he realized gently. "He doesn't want you to get hurt, so he's cutting off all contact."

Ai studied his face for a moment, before resting her head on top of his. "T-take me home," she asked politely. Neji nodded and walked out the door of the Hokage's office.

Guy watched her go and heaved deeply. "So much for trying to let her down gently," Tsunade muttered, and continued working on the paper she was writing on.

***

Kakashi poked at a campfire with the end of a stick. He was very anxious. This wasn't exactly how he remembered the ANBU before—all laid-back and humorous during the nights when they camped out.

6 other ANBU members had accompanied the jonin on the mission. Kakashi felt very out of place next to his younger counterparts. They all gathered around, joking around with each other as they tried to put up their tents, but failed because they were laughing so hard.

All of them were wary of Kakashi. To them, he was some stranger that seemed like a has-been who should have stayed out of the organization when he quit. Although they didn't know it, he was in tip-top shape, having even a better form than when he had joined ANBU in the first place.

Kakashi prodded at the fire some more, watching the little pieces of wood fall to the flames and succumb.

_I wonder how Ai's doing._

The jonin blinked in surprise at his own thoughts. He shouldn't be thinking about her, but he was. He couldn't help but think that he wanted her near, especially tonight, when it would be cold and lonely away from anyone he knew.

"Hey, er, Master Kakashi."

Kakashi looked up at the sudden voice that was coming from one of the members of his squad. He raised his one visible eyebrow questionably. "Yeah, what is it?"

The one who spoke had dark, shaggy black hair and green eyes. He waved slightly. "You know, you don't have to stay over there by yourself. You can come over and join the party."

Behind him, his friends were exchanging glances and muttering comments that resulted in snickers. Kakashi musingly smiled under his mask. He knew that things were going to get really awkward if he went over there and hung out with the young pups.

Kakashi smirked and waved at the one who had spoken out. "Thanks, but I'm fine." He stood up. "I'm going to go to bed anyway."

In the back of his mind, he was about to tell them not to stay up too late, but he remembered that they weren't his students. Realization hit him hard when he remembered that he was no longer a teacher. Not to anyone.

***

Ai rubbed her eyes and heaved deeply. Well this was just GREAT. Her teacher, her best friend, Kakashi Hatake, had rejoined the ANBU Black Ops and put his life in grave danger.

And it was all because of her.

Naruto was at her house now, attempting to keep her company while she was stuck at home with the sprained ankle. He was just as shocked as she was to hear the news; Kakashi was the only teacher he had left on account of Jiraiya dying in battle.

"This isn't easy, is it?" Naruto said to Ai, leaning back in the couch. Ai didn't reply as she stared glumly into space.

Naruto felt a lot of sympathy towards his friend. He knew how much Kakashi meant to her; he compared her relationship with him to that of his own with Jiraiya. When the Pervy Sage had died, he was heartbroken.

"Why on earth would he do this?" Ai asked Naruto. "I mean…I didn't do anything wrong…did I?"

Neither of the chunin spoke for a moment before Naruto sat up to speak.

"Don't take this the wrong way," he began. "Because it was by no means your fault at all. But I've known Kakashi for a while and if there's one thing I know he's scared of, it's commitment. His teammate died in battle just after they began to understand each other and become friends. To him, every time he seems to make bonds, those bonds die right in front of him. I think this is his own way of trying to prevent you from dying…by severing the bond."

Ai digested the words for a moment. "But that's…stupid…" she finally spit out. "Him being around me isn't going to determine whether I die or not. Right?"

Naruto sighed and shrugged. "I'd say no, but…I really don't have any clue."

"Like that's not normal," Ai teased, a small smile beginning to appear on her lips.

"Hey, be nice," Naruto replied, playfully shoving his friend. She began giggling, but stopped immediately once her ankle got jiggled.

"…OW…" Ai bit her tongue to keep from screaming. Naruto realized his mistake and started apologizing.

"I'm sorry!" he said hastily, trying to prop her ankle up again.

Ai chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Bet you did that on purpose."

Naruto was tempted to retort back, but held his tongue once he realized that Ai was beginning to smile and laugh for the first time since she found out the news yesterday.

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**A/N: Yikes. Ai didn't take the news very lightly, did she? Ah well, knowing her, she'll come up with something...**


	4. Change of Plan

**A/N: Great news! Got the fifth story in this series done!**

**However, I'm going to be at camp next week until Friday. I should get the rest of this one put up, and I'll put up Change in Status when I get back.**

**Please review!**

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Kakashi allowed the chakra to dissipate off his hand as he finished his Lightning Blade attack. The opponent lay in a useless heap below his feet. The jonin couldn't help but grin triumphantly at his graceful attack.

The 6 other ANBU members that watched him, however, hung their jaws agape at Kakashi's jutsu. The jonin spun around once he felt the stares on his back and grinned sheepishly behind his animal mask. He rubbed the back of his head.

"Was that a good example of how to kill people?" he asked. All the others exchanged wary glances.

There was an awkward silence, and once Kakashi realized that no one was going to reply, he spun around. "C'mon, we'd better keep moving. The next enemy ninja we come across, I'm letting one of you six take care of it."

Everyone shuddered and followed him wordlessly.

Kakashi leapt from tree to tree in the lead as his team followed him. They were nearing Kusagakure now. He couldn't help but feel anxious, considering the circumstances. It had just seemed like a day ago that he and Ai drove off those two intruders…

He tried profusely to stop thinking about Ai. _This is why you rejoined,_ he told himself mentally. _Don't go running back to the memory that you're trying to get away from._

Kakashi couldn't help it. Ai was his brain's number one priority.

***

"WHAT?! Are you insane?!"

Ai was glad that Guy was gone on a mission, or else he would have had a heart attack by Naruto's sudden outburst.

"C'mon," Ai persuaded to her friend, who was now looking very bewildered. "You want him back too, right?"

Naruto clenched his jaw tight and glared Ai right in the face. "I can't believe you would even consider that!" he roared. "Do you know how dangerous it would be to go after Kakashi?! Especially with your ankle! The other ANBU members would kill us in an instant before asking any questions!"

"So what do you want to do, then?!" Ai snarled back. "We can't just leave Kakashi-sensei out there with all the dangers of being an ANBU member! He's going to die!"

Naruto's gaze softened a little, and his blue eyes widened with realization. Dying was a very strong possibility. It had killed him on the inside when Jiraiya died…would he really want to put his best friend through the same thing?

"Well…I see your point," Naruto admitted. "I don't want Kakashi to die either. But how are we going to get him back? We don't even know where he's going."

Ai remembered the crucial flaw in her plan as well. She sighed wistfully, trying to think of where her sensei could be going.

Then she remembered driving out the Kusa ninja the other day. "Kusagakure," she blurted as soon as she remembered the village. Naruto looked at her curiously.

"How do you know?" he pressed. "Did he tell you it was Kusa?"

"Well…no." Ai smirked. "But the other day he and I drove out some intruders. It would only be logical for Lady Tsunade to send a pack of ANBU members over there to investigate."

"Yeah…" Naruto thought a moment. "You're probably right. Granny Tsunade would want to see what's up over there if we had intruders."

The kunoichi and shinobi both were silent for a moment. "Alright then," Ai said with a determined voice, attempting to stand up. Naruto watched in awe as she was actually able to support herself.

"Then let's go to Kusa."

***

"Hey, Master Kakashi!"

Kakashi paused on the branch he had leapt on to and glanced over his shoulder to see absolutely no one. He was bewildered. Where had everyone gone?

"Wait up!" Kakashi took off his ANBU mask and squinted on the horizon to see the rest of his team hopping steadily along from branch to branch. He blinked with curiosity; how did his team get stuck so far behind?

The man that had spoken to him last night was in the lead, the rest of his friends plodding slightly slower behind him. "Y-you're going pretty fast," the ANBU member admitted, panting as he caught up to Kakashi. The jonin blushed underneath his mask in embarrassment and replaced his ANBU mask on his face.

"Sorry about that, guys," he apologized rather awkwardly, haven't really said anything to the team. "We're nearing Kusagakure, though."

"About time," one of the other members snorted. He had straw colored hair and a muscular build. Then again, everyone else had the latter as well.

Kakashi nodded and turned back towards the direction he was headed. "It's still around 8 miles away, though," he estimated. "So we might need to camp out one more time."

The other ANBU members shuffled in agreement, and without another word, they continued on their way.

***

"Whaddya mean, Granny?! Why won't you tell me?!"

Naruto gripped onto the edge of the Hokage's desk as he glared forward at Tsunade. The kunoichi was looking very irritated.

"I'm not telling you which village Kakashi's squad is headed to, Naruto," she said crossly. "I'm not stupid. I know you'll just go after him."

Naruto snarled and shoved himself backwards. He crossed his arms and plopped down stubbornly on the floor, just like a little kid throwing a tantrum. "I'm not leaving until you tell me," he replied. Then he opened one eye and gazed at his Hokage. "Besides, I'm already pretty sure where they're headed."

Tsunade stood up and ground her teeth. "Hear me out, Naruto!" she snapped, causing the jinchuriki to look up in wonder. "If you DARE go near Kusagakure or even leave the village today, you WILL be demoted! Do you understand?!"

The blonde-haired ninja stood up and bowed his head in defeat. "All…alright." He sighed. Tsunade studied him a moment before her expression turned a little softer.

"Kakashi can decide for his own what he wants to do," she said. "There's no need to interfere. He's a big boy now, and he can make decisions."

Naruto heaved and spun around, glumly walking out of the Hokage's office. It was when he was outside, thinking of how to bring Kakashi back that he got a great idea. With a new smile planted on his face, he dashed off in the direction of Guy's house.


	5. Can't Help But

**A/N: Hey guys! Long chapter this time because I couldn't figure out how to split it up without one chapter being way too short. So here you go...the last chapter of Never Leave.**

**Also, I'm heading to camp on Monday (as you know), so Change in Status will not be posted up until at least next Friday. I guess I could put up the first chapter of it tomorrow, but that would just be torturing, wouldn't it?**

**In any case, thanks for all the reviews. I really appreciate them. Hope to see you next story as well. :)**

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Ai's blue eyes stared into Naruto's with her mouth slightly agape. "She wouldn't let you go?" she asked with shock as she sat on her couch, her ankle propped up.

Naruto shook his head. "No," he admitted. But his expression brightened. "But don't worry! Grandma Tsunade only that I couldn't leave the village…she never said anything about you!"

"For real?" Ai asked, with a smile creeping onto her lips as well. "So…I can go after Kakashi myself?"

"Yup!" Naruto beamed and gave Ai a thumbs-up. Then he glanced down and noticed her ankle again. "Then again, I don't really see how you could, with your ankle and all," Naruto reconsidered, his happy mood deflating.

Ai pondered a moment and shook her head with a smile. "Oh, don't worry about my ankle," she assured, standing up again. She paced rather shakily to the kitchen, leaning on the table for support, and she walked back. "I can walk easier on it today. I'll go to Kusa myself."

Naruto grabbed her shoulder and studied her deep blue eyes. "Well…alright. If you're sure…just be careful, OK?" Ai chuckled and removed his hand.

"I'll be fine," she assured with a grin. She glanced out the window and noticed that darkness was beginning to fall. "I'd better get going if I want to catch up with him, though."

Ai nodded to Naruto, who smiled back. Then the kunoichi walked to the door and opened it, disappearing from Naruto's sight.

The shinobi sighed and grinned. "Ya gotta love her," he muttered to himself, and walked out the door as well.

***

With darkness came freezing weather. And with freezing weather came colds.

Ai walked miserably out in the woods. She had taken a shortcut to Kusagakure, and hoped that Kakashi hadn't done the same, or else she would never catch up with him.

Her ankle was throbbing and swollen. She leaned on every tree in her path for support.

In fact, it was so dark outside that Ai couldn't even tell where she was anymore. She thought that Kusa was about a mile in front of her, but she couldn't tell.

Her nose was stuffy, and the chilly air had made her lungs start acting up again, which brought back bad memories of too many trips to the hospital. Worse, she didn't have her inhaler. She had discarded it because she figured she wouldn't need it anymore.

It was too cold to go any farther. Ai finally collapsed in a heap next to a tree, coughing and hacking, fighting for every breath.

After lying in the cold for 5 minutes and trying desperately to fall asleep, she felt a sudden jolt as someone picked her up. The person steadied her on her feet. Her lips were torn apart as she felt the plastic end of an inhaler enter her mouth, and she sighed, contented that her cough had stopped.

Ai opened her eyes to meet someone's face. By the dim light of what seemed to be a campfire a little ways back, she could make out the smooth features of Kakashi.

"What are you doing out here?" he demanded, grabbing her shoulders. Ai didn't reply though, as a gigantic smile forced its way onto her mouth.

"Kakashi-sensei!" she cried, tears beginning to spill over as she hugged him firmly. Kakashi gazed down at her and couldn't help but smile himself.

"Well, someone certainly missed me," he commented sarcastically. Ai snuggled into his chest.

The embrace lasted at least a minute, but it didn't seem like a second to Ai. Finally Kakashi gently pushed her away and looked her in the eye again. "What you did was stupid and reckless," he said sternly. "Your ankle is sprained, and ANBU missions are extremely dangerous. You could have walked right into a fight."

Ai shrugged. "Doesn't matter," she said, attempting to stay steady on her ankle, which was still throbbing. Then she gazed at her teacher's visible eye before hugging him again.

Kakashi knew he should be stern. He knew he should have pushed her away and laid down the law, just as would have done with any other students. But it was too hard trying to be an ice cube when on the inside you were a giant marshmallow. So, the jonin let Ai lean into him.

Well, why not? She had been through enough today anyway.

After it seemed like Ai was beginning to doze off while standing, Kakashi nudged her. "You need to get back to the village," he reminded her. Ai opened one eye and smiled innocently.

"I can't get back myself," she told him sweetly. "My ankle is killing me, and it's too dangerous for me to wander around at night, alone and too wounded to fight."

Kakashi sighed and cursed inwardly. She made good points, darn it.

"Fine, fine, you win." The jonin picked her up and walked back to the campsite. The other ANBU members gawked at the fact that their leader had a 14-year-old girl in his arms. "Guys, I need to go back to Konoha and drop her off. She's one of my students. I'm placing…you in charge." Kakashi pointed to the man with the shaggy black hair that had called to him the other night.

He looked surprised that he was suddenly the leader of the squad, but didn't say anything. "Later," Kakashi said, and walked past the ANBU members and the tents that were set up in the road.

Kakashi passed Ai around his body so he could carry her on his back. Then he started back the way he and his ANBU squad had come down.

Ai rested her head on her teacher's shoulder. "Sensei," she began, wearing a troubled expression. "Did you join the ANBU because of me?"

Kakashi looked surprised at the question. "Well…partly," he admitted. "I thought that if you kept following me on missions and things, you were going to get hurt worse than just spraining your ankle." Ai opened her mouth to argue, but decided against it after seeing the jonin's distraught face.

"Admit it, though," Ai finally said after a moment. "You didn't really want to get away from me, did you?" Kakashi raised up his eyebrows and glanced back to stare at his student.

"Of course not," he agreed. "I can't help but…"

Ai cocked her head at his unfinished sentence. "But what?"

"But…" Kakashi sighed, knowing he was deep enough in now anyway. "But want to be around you. But like you. But…"

"Love me," Ai finished.

Kakashi furrowed his brow and stared forward again, hoping Ai couldn't see his eyes. "Where did you get that at?" he asked, trying to sound confused. Ai frowned for a moment, but smiled contentedly when she relaxed her head on top of Kakashi's shoulder.

"Just a hunch," she replied, dismissing the thought with a shrug.

Silence filled the air once more before Kakashi started talking again. "I absolutely cannot believe you would come all the way out to Kusagakure just to look for me," he repeated. Ai hugged his neck a little tighter.

"Why wouldn't I?" she asked. "You knew I was going to be miserable without you. You were just BEGGING for me to come out to Kusa and look for you."

"No, I wasn't," Kakashi said sternly. "Look, you seriously could have hurt your ankle. Speaking of which, how were you able to even walk?"

Ai shrugged. "Eh. I toughed the pain out." She grinned cheekily. "I have no limits, remember?"

Kakashi frowned and pulled his brows together. Ai would endure that kind of pain…just to get him to quit the ANBU?

"Where did you get that inhaler?"

Ai's question snapped the jonin from his thoughts. He shut his eye musingly. "I knew that you would get rid of yours as soon as you possibly could," he explained. "So I asked Lady Tsunade for one that I could keep in case you needed it. Good thing I had it."

"I didn't need it," Ai denied. Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"That's not what I figured whenever I found you curled up on the side of the path, coughing up a lung."

Ai didn't say anymore as she giggled and closed her eyes. She fell asleep to the world whooshing past her, Kakashi's strong arms holding her up.

***

"I can't BELIEVE THIS!"

Ai pouted as she sat on the side of bridge near the edge of the village, her foot dangling limply. It was still kind of throbbing from hiking nearly 4 miles on it.

Kakashi stood on the other side of the bridge and musingly studied his student's back. He had given up his ANBU attire and once again wore his blue sweats and jonin vest. "You can't go on missions anyway," he said, trying to comfort her.

"I COULD," Ai said harshly. "I could learn to fight with my ankle even before it healed! But NOOOO, I get punished for leaving the village without permission!" The chunin gripped the bridge ledge tighter as she threw her head back. "WHAT ABOUT FREEDOM OF CHOICE?!"

Kakashi walked over and grabbed Ai's head for support before she fell off her seat. "That doesn't exactly apply to Konoha," he said with a chuckle. Ai glared up at his face.

"Well, it should," she argued, and hauled herself up, continuing to give the river a menacing glare.

"Hey, it's true!"

A voice caused Ai and Kakashi both to look off in the distance and see Naruto running for them, smiling and waving. "Just when I thought you'd gone all tough on us, Kakashi," he chuckled with a wide smile.

Kakashi ruffled Naruto's hair, discovering that soon he was going to pass him up in height. "Aw, come on, who do you take me for? Guy?"

Ai laughed. "Actually sensei, I don't think he was ever hard in the first place."

The three laughed in unison. Naruto noticed that the sun was beginning to sink. His eyes widened. "Whoa. Where did the time go?"

Ai had to agree with her friend. It had just seemed like a couple hours ago when she was at the Hokage's office, being scolded for sneaking out of Konoha in pursuit of Kakashi.

"I had better get back to Ichiraku," Naruto said. "Iruka-sensei is meeting me." He grinned and waved at the two. "Bye, Kakashi! Bye, Ai-kun!" With that, he was off.

Ai smiled and watched him run off, then remembered that she had better get home. Guy was coming back from his mission today and he would want her to cook dinner.

Kakashi seemed to share the same thoughts as her. She widened her eyes at her teacher. "It would take a while to hobble home by myself…" she trailed off. Kakashi snorted and crouched down next to her.

"Hop on," he said grudgingly.

Ai obliged, and Kakashi stood up, beginning to walk in the direction of her house. The kunoichi smiled. "I've got you all figured out, sensei," she said cheekily.

"That's what I'm scared of," Kakashi answered with a small smile.

Kakashi was a man that was usually viewed as not having too many emotions. Sometimes he was kind, sometimes angry, but most of the time just laid back.

But who knew that all it took was a hug good-bye from Ai to have him turn into a complete puffball. No longer was he tough Kakashi, son of the White Fang.

Now he was Kakashi Hatake, the man who was constantly in the company of a sweet little kunoichi named Ai.

_The End…FOR NOW._


End file.
